ABC is Florida’s largest professional management association of commercial, industrial and institutional general contractors, specialty contractors, associates and suppliers.
Ranked by the U.S. Congress among the most influential organizations in the country, ABC was founded on and remains committed to our three-fold mission of safety and skills training, government and political affairs, and business development.
The House and Senate return from a two-week recess on Tuesday as House Democrats ramp up their impeachment proceedings against President Trump. Democrats are currently deciding over whether to formally vote on opening an impeachment inquiry, which has been done in previous impeachment proceedings against Presidents Nixon and Clinton and has been a chief Republican criticism of the impeachment probe.
At this time, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) doesn’t seem to think a vote necessary, but that could change if a judge rules later this month that a vote is needed for the impeachment probe to be legitimized in the eyes of the court.
There are only 28 legislative days scheduled for the House before the end of the year and Congress needs to come to an agreement on funding the government and pass the President’s trade deal (USMCA), while House Democrats also want to impeach the president.
PRO Act Action Alert:
Union organizations will be making a huge push in support of the PRO Act (H.R. 2474) this Wednesday with a day of action on the Hill. The bill currently has 214 cosponsors, only 4 away from a majority in the House. It is critical that ABC members reach out to their members of Congress in opposition to this dangerous legislation. ABC’s PRO Act action alert is available here, and we will be sending out an updated alert on Wednesday morning urging members to call their Representatives and voice their concerns about the bill.
Trade Update:
Last week, President Trump announced that the US and China have reached a “phase-one” agreement on trade that President Trump stated may be signed by Chairman Xi and the President during the APEC meetings in Chile next month. However, reports have stated that China wants further talks as soon as the end of October to hammer out the details of the deal.
In the short term, this isn’t as much of a cease-fire as it is a non-escalation pact. In the longer term, it is clear that the economic damage being done by the trade war is pushing both the US and China to try to find ways to avoid doing further damage to their economies.
The deal, as reported, includes commitments from China to purchase $40-50 billion dollars more agricultural products from the US and to comply with guidelines on currency manipulation. President Trump also stated that the agreement will include some provisions on intellectual property and forced technology transfer, although no details were provided on what those provisions may entail.
On the US side, the tariff hikes that were scheduled to take effect on October 15th are going to be delayed indefinitely, the US will consider delaying the December 15th tariff increases, and existing tariffs remain in place. When announcing the deal, no commitments were made regarding individual companies subject to US sanctions or export restrictions, such Huawei or COSCO, although it possible these issues could be addressed as the agreement is committed to writing.
Immigration Update:
In separate court rulings last week, the Trump administration faced setbacks to key immigration initiatives. In El Paso, a federal court ruled the Trump administration’s attempt to reprogram military funds for the construction of border fencing was a violation of appropriation laws, a decision that could freeze work on the barrier in that area.
While in separate rulings in New York, California and Washington state, judges partly blocked the implementation of the administration’s “public charge” rule that aimed to disqualify immigrants from receiving green cards if they use public benefits or the government considers them likely to do so. ABC, as part of the Essential Worker Immigration Coalition (EWIC), expressed concerns that the rulemaking effort will discourage foreign-born workers from contributing to the construction workforce.
Election Update:
This weekend in Louisiana’s gubernatorial primary, Republican and ABC member Eddie Rispone won enough votes to face off against incumbent Gov. John Bell Edwards (D) in the Nov. 16 general election. Rispone is the founder of ISC Contractors, one of the largest merit shop specialty contracting firms in the U.S. industrial market. He served as ABC’s 2003 chair and has been an active member of the organization’s chapters and leadership in Louisiana and across the country.
Combined, the primary’s Democratic vote reached 47.4%, compared to the combined Republican percentage of 51.8.
New Member Highlight:
A former mayor and state legislator, Tim Burchett serves as the new Rep. for Tennessee’s 2nd Congressional District, replacing the retired Jimmy Duncan (R).
For eight years, Burchett served as mayor of Knox County, Tennessee. During his administration, he fought to keep tax rates low, cut debt and paid for a new elementary school without adding new debt. Prior to that, he started a small business before serving 16 years in the state legislature, four years in the State House followed by 12 years in the State Senate.
Burchett serves on three committees in the House: Foreign Affairs, Budget, and Small Business.
While the majority of bills that passed this session have yet to be delivered to the Governor for his final consideration and signature, we wanted to take a moment to send you the attached report – a final look at ABC’s Legislative Priorities, other bills of interest to the industry, what passed, what didn’t, what to lookout for, and who our Legislative Champions are from this session.
As “The Voice of Commercial Construction” in Florida, we take pride in advocating on your behalf and on behalf of our entire industry. We hope you find this report helpful.
Find your Florida House Member
Carol Bowen, ABC Chief Lobbyist
3730 Coconut Creek Parkway, Suite 200
Coconut Creek, FL 33066
cbowen@abceastflorida.com
Robert Stuart
Chris Carmody
GrayRobinson
Find ABC Chapters across the nation here.
Visit the ABC of Florida website for more information.
© 2019 — Central Florida Chapter Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc.